Why it works: Flour and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Custard, Boiled
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the custard
Beat the yolks and whites of the eggs separately until well combined.
Combine the beaten eggs, flour, milk, and salt in a bowl.
Pour the mixture into a prepared cloth and tie it securely.
Cook and serve
Boil the cloth in water until the custard is set.
Serve hot with wine or cream sauce.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Flour and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Egg proteins set when heated, giving the boiled custard its firm, sliceable body.
- Flour
- Starch swells in hot liquid and thickens the custard mixture.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that carries the eggs and flour and keeps the custard moist.
The step that matters
Boil the cloth until the custard is set. Egg proteins set with heat, so the custard needs enough boiling to firm up. Boiling too long can make the eggs tough or grainy, so check for set rather than relying on time.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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